INASP

INASP (International Network for Advancing Science and Policy) is an international development charity working with a global network of partners to improve access, production and use of research information and knowledge, so that countries are equipped to solve their development challenges.

International Network for Advancing Science and Policy
AbbreviationINASP
Formation1992 (1992)
TypeINGO
Region served
Worldwide
Official language
English
Parent organization
International Council for Science (ICSU)
WebsiteINASP Official website

Based in Oxford and governed by an international Board of Trustees, INASP is run with a small number of full-time staff working with, and through, partners and networks in over one hundred countries. INASP's work is funded by its partner countries, governmental and non-governmental development agencies, and philanthropic foundations.

History

INASP original name, now superseded, was "International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications".[1] It was established by the International Council for Science (ICSU) in 1992 to "improve access to information and knowledge through a commitment to capacity building in emerging and developing countries."[2]

It was registered as a charity in 2004.

Work

All the work of INASP aims to improve access to, and production and use of, research information and knowledge for sustainable development.

The charity focuses on the following key aspects of the research communication cycle:

  • Availability and access to research publications
  • Improving quality of research publications and communication
  • Building demand for research information
  • Supporting evidence informed policy making
  • Strengthening research and knowledge networks
  • Sharing learning and best practice

INASP partners with the Oxford University Press, the HINARI project of the World Health Organizaton and the eIFL Foundation in order to provide a free or low-cost online access to his academic journals for the developing countries. According to the UP's numbers, the above project has involved more than 2.000 institutions (as of 24 August 2020).[3]

Projects

AuthorAID
Main article: AuthorAID

The AuthorAID project has two key goals: to increase the success rate of developing country researchers in achieving publication; and to increase the visibility and influence of research in the developing world. AuthorAID achieves these objectives through networking, resources, training and mentoring.

Journals Online

INASP's Journals Online project aims to improve the accessibility and visibility of developing country research. By providing a cost-effective and secure platform for online journals, along with advice, resource guides and links to suitable technologies and hosting organisations, the Journals Online enable easy discoverability of the wide range of journals and research being produced. In addition to the platform, through the Journals Online, those wishing to publish their journals online have access to advice, resource guides and links to suitable technologies and hosting organisations.

Public Knowledge Project (PKP) based in Canada was used to develop these platforms or websites for online journal hosting and originally began with African Journals Online (AJOL). At present, it also includes Bangladesh Journals OnLine (BanglaJOL), Latin America Journals Online (LAMJOL),[4] Nepal Journals Online (NepJOL), Sri Lanka Journals Online (SLJOL), Philippines Journals Online (PhilJOL), and Vietnam Journals Online (VJOL). Although, the JOLs are initially hosted by PKP in Canada but, it is planned that they will be hosted in their country of origin. PhilJOL and VJOL are now being managed in-country and BanglaJOL began the transition to country-ownership in 2012.[5]

Publishers for Development

Publishers for Development is a forum for information and discussion around the importance of access to information for development. Through a range of activities, it explores some of the unique challenges developing country libraries, researchers and publishers experience. It also provides an opportunity for publishers to keep up-to-date and feed their input into the work all parties are undertaking to lessen the digital divide.

VakaYiko

The VakaYiko Consortium is a three-year project involving five organisations working primarily in three countries. Vaka is Shona (Southern Africa) for ‘build’ and Yiko is Dagbani (Ghana) for capacity which illustrates the main African regions where the consortium works.

See also

References
  1. "25 years of INASP | INASP". www.inasp.info. Retrieved 2019-05-09.
  2. UNESCO page on INASP
  3. "Oxford Academic Journals -about us". Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  4. http://www.lamjol.info/ http://www.lamjol.info/index.php/index
  5. Browse, Lucy (2013). "Co-operation and collaboration to strengthen the global research cycle". Insights: The UKSG Journal. 26: 34–43. doi:10.1629/2048-7754.26.1.34.
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